Rampion application withdrawn

Two weeks after submitting it, E.ON has withdrawn its application to install the Rampion wind farm off the coast of Brighton.

The application for between 100 and 195 turbines called was submitted direct to the Planning Inspectorate on 14 December 2012 but E.ON asked for it to be “temporarily” withdrawn on 2 January because "certain omissions in respect of the Section 42 consultation" had come to light.

Worryingly, Section 42 of the 2008 Planning Act concerns the duty on the applicant to consult interested parties.

The letter said, "Having reviewed the situation and taken advice on the materiality of these omissions in conjunction with discussions the project team has had with (the Planning Inspectorate), E.ON has fully committed to address these points prior to the Secretary of State making his decision on whether to accept the application for examination".

A spokeswoman for E.ON said, "We remain completely committed to the project, but wish to take extra time now to maintain our comprehensive approach to consultation."

ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP COMMENT

If E.ON have pulled the applicaiton after submitting it to the Inspectorate over concerns about Section 42 compliance they either forgot to consult someone very important or part of their consultation process was flawed leaving it open to challenge. Although the company says it intends to resubmit in February, either way it is an embarrassing situation.